By Stella Chavez, KERA News for Audio Texas
DALLAS – On Saturday (16 July), the last of five police officers killed in the July 7 downtown Dallas shootings was laid to rest at Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery. As part of KERA’s series, “Remembering the Fallen,” Stella Chavez looks at the life of 32-year-old Dallas Officer Patrick Zamarripa.
As a young boy, Patrick Zamarripa knew what he wanted to be. He had a neighbor named Mike, who lived down the street. Mike was a police officer.
“He was, ‘Wow,’ just always admired Mike and so he always told his mom. I’m going to be a police officer. I’m going to be a police officer.”
That’s Zamarripa’s aunt, Lanette Martinez. She says being a peacemaker was in his blood. After his parents divorced, Martinez says her nephew took on a family leadership role. So it was no surprise when he joined the United States Navy after high school. Zamarripa became a Dallas police officer in 2010 after serving three tours of duty in Iraq.
“He was real serious and so my dad actually would call him Tom Landry and one time when he was on a band trip, he met Tom Landry at the airport and got to sit next to Tom Landry on the plane. So that was one of the highlights of his life.”
Landry was just one of several celebrities Zamarripa would meet. He worked off duty at the Candleroom bar in Dallas. And as the Dallas Observer reports, that’s where he met actor Cuba Gooding Jr. and several Texas Rangers baseball players. One of those players Joey Gallo posted a photo on Instagram of him and fellow player Nomar Mazara with Zamarripa. Gallo wrote, quote: “I’ll never forget how kind and down to earth the officer was.” Martinez recall’s her nephew’s passion for baseball.
“I’m sure that Patrick went to about 200 games and always made sure that he was at Opening Day.”
It seems EVERYONE knew he was quite the fan. Former president George W. Bush even got a reaction out of the audience at last week’s memorial service for the five officers killed.
“Patrick Zamarripa – U.S. Navy Reserve Combat Veteran. Proud father. And loyal Texas Rangers Fan (laughs, applause).”
On Saturday, mourners packed the 5,000-seat Wilkerson-Greines Activity Center in Fort Worth for Zamarripa’s Catholic funeral mass. Officers traveled across the country from places like California, Chicago and New York to be there. Dallas Police Chief David Brown spoke at the service … comparing Zamarripa’s sacrifice to the story of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. Brown said Jesus was teaching his followers about leadership and that serving others is personal.
“And what’s more personal than being willing to give your life in your service? That’s the example here that the ultimate sacrifice of giving your life is our calling to serve others in a personal way…”
Zamarripa leaves behind his partner and fiancée Kristy, their daughter and a stepson. His aunt Lanette Martinez says she last spoke to him two weeks ago. The last thing she remembers him saying?
“Patrick always told us, ‘Bye, see you later. We love you.’ ”
She says that’s just how he was raised – to remember that family is all they have.
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